Review: the 2019 Oscars

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The 2019 Oscars may have been one of the least controversial Academy Awards ceremony that has taken place in years. There was no big mix-up of name cards à la La La Land and Moonlight in 2017 or an outrageously surprising win such as The Shape of Water stealing Best Picture in 2018. There were no jaw-dropping political remarks, Jennifer Lawrence did not fall up the stairs, and there was no host who was unanimously found to be an embarrassment. In fact, there was no host at all. This years Oscars ceremony was peaceful, smooth, full of incredible nominations and fully-deserving winners, and by all accounts a breath of fresh air.

The list of winners were not particularly shocking. Rami Malek won Best Actor for his stunning transformation into Freddie Mercury in Bohemian Rhapsody. Olivia Colman won Best Actress for her comedic and complex character of the Queen in The Favourite. Roma won Best Director and Cinematography, Green Book won Best Picture, Black Panther won Best Costume Design, “Shallow” from A Star is Born won Best Original Song (preceded by a stunningly intimate and gorgeous performance of the song by Lady Gaga and Bradley Cooper). This is just to name a few.

However, the mild atmosphere that separates this year’s Oscars from the previous years was perhaps a deliberate decision. In the past, the Academy has had mishap after mishap that have lowered their ratings after time and been a great cause of criticism, from poor hosts to shocking category winners. This year, things were played safe. There was no single host, but rather a series of celebrities introduced each movie as well as each category and its nominees. The celebrities were diverse, starring many from Serena Williams to John Mulaney and everyone in-between.

The presenters weren’t the only diverse aspect to the 2019 Oscars. Three of the four acting winners were people of color: Regina King from If Beale Street Could Talk, Mahershala Ali from Green Book, and first generation Egyptian American Rami Malek from Bohemian Rhapsody. Ruth E. Carter and Hannah Beachler from Black Panther made history as the first black women to win in their categories of Best Costume Design and Best Production Design. Domee Shi won Best Short Animated Film for Bao, and Rayka Zehtabchi and Melissa Berton won best Short Documentary Film for Period. End of Sentence, a movie about menstruation and gender equality. Spike Lee, Sean McKittrick, Jason Blum, Raymond Mansfield, and Jordan Peele won Best Adapted Screenplay for BlacKkKlansman, all of whom are black men.

Hudson Young, KCC’s resident film connoisseur, commented on this story. as he made an effort to see all of the movies nominated, and acts as an appropriate judge on the state of this years Oscars.

“Overall I loved the Oscars this year, without a host especially,” Young said. “Everyone who won deserved it and it was fun to watch the different performers and presenters with unique ways to entertain the audience.”